"For the first time in my life, I put my body and reputation on the line to stand up for my beliefs and do the right thing," she said told the Associated Press. "I hope I've encouraged other people to do the same."

Last February, she and six other activists climbed a 174-foot drilling tower on a ship owned by Shell and docked in New Zealand. She camped there for four days to prevent it from being deployed to the Arctic, and blogged about her experiences.

Lawless faces a maximum sentence of three years, but does not anticipate receiving jail time because she is a first-time offender. She does worry, however, that it could impede her ability to travel to other countries for work if some countries denied her entry.

"If I couldn't travel, obviously that would be a tremendous pain in the neck," she said.

Lawless’ role on Starz’s Spartacus ended last season, but the New Zealand native said she has other projects in the works.